Garden tool holder

ABSTRACT

A simple holder for hand-held garden tools comprising a casing, a belt clip, a securing device to prevent inadvertent slippage, and a blade guard to prevent damage to the inside of the casing. Attaching the belt clip to the user&#39;s belt permits hand-held garden tools to be carried conveniently by the user without requiring the use of his hands.

BACKGROUND-DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

Landscape gardeners and horticulturists have long expressed the need for garden tool holders of various types to allow them the option of conveniently and safely carrying hand-held garden tools on the user's person while working or moving throughout a work area. By carrying the tools on their person, the user avoids the inconvenience of setting the tools down and then having to retrieve them when needed. Further, by carrying the tools on their person, the user is less likely to misplace, lose, or leave a tool in a potentially dangerous location or position. Further still, by carrying the tools on their person, the user is also free to use both hands to perform gardening tasks such as weeding, pruning, etc. or mobility tasks such as climbing trees.

The prior art contains a variety of solutions to this problem and typically, the prior art teaches some type of holder where the carried item is disposed at the user's waist level as an attachment to the user's belt or as an independently disposed utility belt with various vertically aligned pockets or slots into which the user inserts the carried item(s). For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,227,336, issued to Dickey (1966) discloses a firearm (handgun) holster suspended from the user's belt and having an interior shield disposed within the wearer's trousers to protect the user's clothing from being stained with gun oil. U.S. Pat. No. 3,285,482 issued to Bedsaul (1966) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,319,704 issued to Rosen both disclose devices that are clipped to the user's belt and have hip-engaging supports. U.S. Pat. No. 5,497,921 issued to Dancygear (1996) discloses a paint can holder having a main body looped around the user's belt and also having a means for securing the paint can so that it doesn't dangle from the user's belt.

Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 6,805,270 issued to Fraser (2004), U.S. Pat. No. 6,659,317 issued to Borson (2003), U.S. Pat. No. 6,641,015 issued to Huggins, Jr. (2003), U.S. Pat. No. 6,641,011 issued to Kahn (2003), U.S. Pat. No. 6,491,191 issued to Cleveland (2002), U.S. Pat. No. 6,446,852 issued to Sorensen et. al. (2002), and U.S. Pat. No. 6,364,187 issued to Castellano et. al disclose holders for carrying, respectively, a fisherman's utility rod, T-shaped and L-shaped hand tools, syringes or similar first aid items, hand-held tools, a caulking gun, hand-held tools, and portable cellular phones or similar small objects.

Despite the variety of solutions presented by the prior art, landscapers and horticulturists continue to express the need for garden tool holders of simple design and construction that allow them the option of conveniently and safely carrying hand-held garden tools on their person while working or moving throughout a work area. While the prior art discloses inventions that provide a means for carrying hand-held items, those inventions have inherent shortcomings that give rise to the ongoing need for more effective and efficient tool holders. For example, most of the prior art teaches vertically aligned tool holders which necessarily require an ergonomically inefficient removal/extraction motion to take the carried tool out of the holder or holster. Further, most of the prior art teaches tool holders of complex construction which increases the cost of the tool holder and often places the fmal product outside the range of a reasonable production cost for a commercially distributed product. Further still, most of the prior art teaches holders that lack reinforcement rendering the materials comprising such holders vulnerable to deterioration and weakening from the scraping and cutting action inherent in the repetitive insertion and removal of tools with points and/or sharp edges. Finally, most of the prior art teaches holders that have no means of keeping the tools securely within the holder in the event the user is working in a downward sloping position; the prior art that does address this issue teaches the use of restraining straps or flaps of material that cover the holder and make it into a pouch, both of which render the hand-held tools more difficult to access.

OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES

The present invention seeks to overcome these shortcomings by providing a tool holder that is simple in construction, ergonomically efficient, and durable while still meeting the stated needs of the gardener and horticulturist for a reasonably priced hand-held garden tool holder that will allow them to conveniently and safely carry hand-held garden tools on their person while working or moving throughout a work area. Accordingly, the objects and advantages of the present invention are:

(1) to provide a hand-held tool holder which is capable of carrying tools of varying dimensions, weights, shapes, and sizes.

(2) to provide a hand-held tool holder that is simple to construct, economical in price and easy to use.

(3) to provide a hand-held tool holder that is disposed in a manner that permits easy and ergonomically efficient removal and insertion of the hand-held tools carried therein.

(4) to provide a hand-held tool holder that keeps the hand-held tools secured within the holder.

(5) to provide a hand-held tool holder with an interior surface that is durable and able to withstand debilitating damage caused by repetitive removal and insertion of hand-held tools with points or sharp edges.

(6) to provide a hand-held tool holder that doesn't have to be removed when the user is seated such as in a workstation or in a vehicle.

Additional objects, advantages, and novel features of the invention will be set forth in part of the description which follows, will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following specification, or may be learned through the practice of the present invention. Still further objects and advantages of my invention will become apparent from a consideration of the drawings and the ensuing description of the invention

SUMMARY

In accordance with the present invention, device that securely holds hand-held garden tools inserted therein comprising a casing, a belt clip, a securing device, and a blade guard.

DRAWINGS

Drawing Figures

FIG. 1 is a front view of the preferred embodiment of the claimed invention.

FIG. 2 is a top view of unassembled casing of the preferred embodiment of the claimed invention.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the preferred embodiment of the claimed invention with the belt clip fully extended.

FIG. 4 is a front view of the preferred embodiment of the claimed invention mounted on the user's belt.

FIG. 5 is a front view of the preferred embodiment of the claimed invention depicting the location of the stop guard and the blade guard.

FIG. 6 is a front view of another embodiment of the claimed invention wherein the lower portion of the casing is closed.

FIG. 7 is a front view of another embodiment of the claimed invention wherein the belt clip consists of a closed loop on one side of the casing.

FIG. 7 is a front view of another alternative embodiment of the claimed invention Reference Numerals in Drawings  1 - casing  2 - outer edge  3 - inner edge  4 - side  5 - belt clip  6 - belt  7 - attaching device  8 - securing device  9 - blade guard 10 - hand-held garden tool 11 - fastening device

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Description-Preferred Embodiment

FIG. 1 shows the preferred embodiment of the present invention while FIG. 2 shows a top view of unassembled casing 1 of the claimed invention. Casing 1 is a truncated circular segment of leather, plastic, canvas, rubber, or other similarly durable and flexible material with an outer edge 2 having a radius of approximately twelve inches, an inner edge 3 having a radius of approximately three inches and two equilinear sides 4 which vary in length from five to nine inches depending upon the tool for which the present invention is designed to carry. While the arc length of outer edge 2 and inner edge 3 will vary to accommodate various tools, the arc length of outer edge 2 is typically seven to eight inches while the arc length of inner edge 3 is typically two to three inches.

FIGS. 3 and 4 show belt clip 5 which is typically made from the same material as casing 1 and attached to casing 1 at a downward angle so that outer edge 2 will be above the user's belt 6 and lower edge 3 will be below the user's belt 6. Attaching belt clip 5 to casing 1 at a downward angle causes casing 1 to have an angular disposition with respect to user's belt 6 as opposed to a vertical disposition. This, in turn, allows the user to insert or remove garden tool 10 in an more ergonomically efficient and less awkward manner.

One end of belt clip 5 is permanently attached to one side of casing 1 by attaching devices 7 which can be rivets, sewing thread, glue or any other suitable device for permanently fastening the material comprising casing 1 and belt clip 5 while the other end of belt clip 5 is secured to the opposite side of casing 1 by a fastening device 8 which can be a metal or plastic snap mechanism, Velcro® strips, or other such fasteners so that belt clip 5 forms a closed loop around the user's belt 6. Fastening device 8 should be sufficiently strong to securely attach the free end of belt clip 5 to the opposite side of casing 1 so that the present invention doesn't fall off of the user's belt 6 but should also permit easy disengagement of the free end of belt clip 5 from the opposite side of casing 1 so that the user can remove the present invention from user's belt 6 when desired.

FIG. 5 shows securing device 8 and blade guard 9 which are attached to the interior surface of casing 1. Securing device 8 is typically a narrow rectilinear strip of the same material comprising casing 1 and is sewn, glued, or otherwise attached to the inside of casing 1 and immediately below outer edge 2 so as to prevent the inadvertent slipping or extraction of tool 10. Securing device 8 can also be constructed from rubber, plastic, canvas, or other such durable and pliable materials. Securing device 8 can be a continuous strip attached to the entire inside perimeter of casing 1 and immediately below outer edge 2 or it can consist of two rectilinear strips attached to the opposite ends of the interior surface of casing 1 immediately below outer edge 2.

Blade guard 9 is typically a wider strip of the same material comprising casing 1 and is sewn, glued, or otherwise attached inside casing 1 and immediately above inner edge 2 so as to prevent cutting or abrasion damage to the interior surface of casing 1 from the blade(s) found on tool 10. Blade guard 9 can also be constructed from rubber, plastic, canvas, or other such durable and pliable materials.

Description-Alternative Embodiments

FIG. 6 shows another embodiment of the present invention where casing 1 is formed by permanently joining the equilinear sides of a pie-shaped wedge cut from a circular swatch of leather or other such durable and flexible material. The circular swatch should have a radius of approximately twelve inches but could be longer or shorter to accommodate various tool sizes. In this embodiment, casing 1 is more like a closed-bottom pouch and as such, provides an additional safety feature by protecting the user from an inadvertent puncture wound from the tip of tool 10.

Securing device 8 and blade guard 9 in this embodiment would be the similar to securing device 8 and blade guard 9 disclosed in the preferred embodiment. Blade guard 9 could also be formed by permanently joining the equilinear sides of a pie-shaped wedge cut from a circular swatch of leather or other such durable and flexible material that may be similar to or different from the material used to construct casing 1. The circular swatch used to construct blade guard 9 would have a smaller radius than that used to construct casing 1. The smaller pie-shaped wedge used for blade guard 9 would be fully inserted into casing 1 and attached by sewing, gluing, rivets, or some other suitable means.

FIG. 7 show another embodiment wherein belt clip 5 is comprised of a rectilinear strip of leather or other such durable and pliable material but having both ends permanently attached at a downward angle to the same side of casing 1 so as to create a loop through which user's belt 6 could be inserted. This embodiment presents a simple, easy-to-make, and economic embodiment of the present invention.

Although the descriptions above contain many specifics, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present invention. Instead, these specifics should be construed as merely providing illustrations of some of the many embodiments of the invention. For example, the overall length of casing 1 can be increased to accommodate a longer hand-held garden tool 10. Similarly, the arc lengths of inner edge 3 and outer edge 2 can be increased to accommodate wider or bulkier hand-held garden tools 10. Accordingly, the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the examples given.

CONCLUSION, RAMIFICATIONS, AND SCOPE

The reader should appreciate that the present invention provides a tool holder that is simple in construction, ergonomically efficient, and durable while still meeting the stated needs of the gardener and horticulturist for a reasonably priced hand-held garden tool holder that will allow them to conveniently and safely carry hand-held garden tools on their person while working or moving throughout a work area. The reader should appreciate these objects and advantages:

-   -   to provide a hand-held tool holder which is capable of carrying         tools of varying dimensions, weights, shapes, and sizes.     -   to provide a hand-held tool holder that is simple to construct,         economical in price and easy to use.     -   to provide a hand-held tool holder that is disposed in a manner         that permits easy and ergonomically efficient removal and         insertion of the hand-held tools carried therein.     -   to provide a hand-held tool holder that keeps the hand-held         tools secured within the holder.     -   to provide a hand-held tool holder with an interior surface that         is durable and able to withstand debilitating damage caused by         repetitive removal and insertion of hand-held tools with points         or sharp edges.     -   to provide a hand-held tool holder that doesn't have to be         removed when the user is seated such as in a workstation or in a         vehicle.

Thus the scope of the present invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the examples given. 

1. A device that securely holds hand-held garden tools inserted therein comprising: a. a casing formed by permanently joining the equilinear sides of a truncated circular segment of leather or other such durable and flexible material, said truncated circular segment having an outer edge with a radius of approximately 12 inches and an arc length of approximately 9 inches, an inner edge with a radius of approximately 3 inches and an arc length of approximately 3 inches, and equilinear sides of approximately 9 inches each, b. a belt clip comprised of a rectilinear strip of leather or other such durable and pliable material attached to said casing at a downward angle, said belt clip having one end permanently attached to said casing and the other end with a means for temporarily securing itself to the opposite side of said casing, c. a securing device comprised of a rectilinear strip of leather or other such durable and pliable material attached to the entire inside perimeter and immediately below and parallel to said outer edge of said casing, and d. a blade guard comprised of a rectilinear strip of leather or other such durable and pliable material attached along the entire inside perimeter and immediately above and parallel to said inner edge of said casing.
 2. The device according to claim 1 wherein any two components are made of the same material.
 3. The device according to claim 1 wherein any three components are made of the same material.
 4. The device according to claim 1 wherein all four components are made of the same material.
 5. The device according to claim 1 wherein one end of said belt clip is permanently attached to said casing by sewing.
 6. The device according to claim 1 wherein one end of said belt clip is permanently attached to said casing with rivets.
 7. The device according to claim 1 wherein one end of said belt clip is permanently attached to said casing by gluing.
 8. The device according to claim 1 wherein said means for temporarily securing itself to the opposite side of said casing is a metal snap mechanism.
 9. The device according to claim 1 wherein said means for temporarily securing itself to the opposite side of said casing is the use of Velcro® strips.
 10. The device according to claim 1 wherein said means for temporarily securing itself to the opposite side of said casing is the use of Velcro® strips in combination with a metal snap mechanism.
 11. The device according to claim 1 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber.
 12. The device according to claim 2 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber.
 13. The device according to claim 3 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber.
 14. The device according to claim 4 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber.
 15. The device according to claim 5 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber.
 16. The device according to claim 6 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber.
 17. The device according to claim 7 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber.
 18. The device according to claim 8 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber.
 19. The device according to claim 9 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber.
 20. The device according to claim 10 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber.
 21. The device according to claim 1 wherein said casing is formed by permanently joining the equilinear sides of a pie-shaped wedge cut from a circular swatch of leather or other such durable and flexible material, said circular swatch having a radius of approximately 12 inches.
 22. The device according to claim 21 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber.
 23. The device according to claim 21 wherein said. blade guard is a pouch fully inserted into and attached to said casing, said pouch formed by permanently joining the equilinear sides of a pie-shaped wedge cut from a circular swatch of leather or other such durable and flexible material, said circular swatch having a radius smaller than 12 inches.
 24. The device according to claim 21 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber.
 25. The device according to claim 1 wherein said belt clip is comprised of a rectilinear strip of leather or other such durable and pliable material and having both ends of said rectilinear strip permanently attached to the same side of said casing at a downward angle.
 26. The device according to claim 22 wherein said securing device is comprised of a narrow rectilinear strip of rubber. 